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| A D.C. strip club had been there for years. But a new name is sparking protest. | A D.C. strip club had been there for years. But a new name is sparking protest. |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| For several decades, the neighbors had maintained an uneasy coexistence with the Northwest Washington strip bar, at one point forging an agreement that banned the proprietor from putting up signs that contained any hint of sexual innuendo. | For several decades, the neighbors had maintained an uneasy coexistence with the Northwest Washington strip bar, at one point forging an agreement that banned the proprietor from putting up signs that contained any hint of sexual innuendo. |
| But new owners have re-christened the club “Assets,” scandalizing residents who contend that the name — rendered in pink neon above the awning — is not fit for a spot that borders two residential neighborhoods: Dupont Circle and Kalorama. | But new owners have re-christened the club “Assets,” scandalizing residents who contend that the name — rendered in pink neon above the awning — is not fit for a spot that borders two residential neighborhoods: Dupont Circle and Kalorama. |
| A community leader, in a protest letter to District officials, cited no less an authority than the Urban Dictionary — that crowdsourced scroll of street slang — to complain that the signage suggests a “person’s body, as in boobs,” and a “well known, vulgar term for a person’s rear end.” | A community leader, in a protest letter to District officials, cited no less an authority than the Urban Dictionary — that crowdsourced scroll of street slang — to complain that the signage suggests a “person’s body, as in boobs,” and a “well known, vulgar term for a person’s rear end.” |
| “It’s just crass,” said Marie Drissel, who lives in a townhouse toward the far end of a long block down from the club, which is at Connecticut and Florida avenues NW. “It’s 2019 — what are they thinking? Why didn’t they pick a nondescript name? The minute I saw it, I knew what it was.” | “It’s just crass,” said Marie Drissel, who lives in a townhouse toward the far end of a long block down from the club, which is at Connecticut and Florida avenues NW. “It’s 2019 — what are they thinking? Why didn’t they pick a nondescript name? The minute I saw it, I knew what it was.” |
| Gabby Miller, 26, the club’s proprietor, described Assets as “the perfect name” for her establishment — “cheeky” and suggestive of “something of value” — and brushed aside criticism that it demeans women. Miller, who is African American, said the naysayers are unhappy because of a perception that she caters to a black clientele. | Gabby Miller, 26, the club’s proprietor, described Assets as “the perfect name” for her establishment — “cheeky” and suggestive of “something of value” — and brushed aside criticism that it demeans women. Miller, who is African American, said the naysayers are unhappy because of a perception that she caters to a black clientele. |
| “The problem is that there are some black faces on this side of Connecticut Avenue,” she said. “They’re seeing dark faces coming in and out of the building. They’re seeing the bouncers outside. They’re saying the things that you would expect a 75-year-old Caucasian to say.” | “The problem is that there are some black faces on this side of Connecticut Avenue,” she said. “They’re seeing dark faces coming in and out of the building. They’re seeing the bouncers outside. They’re saying the things that you would expect a 75-year-old Caucasian to say.” |
| Donald Friedman, the head of a citizens group who wrote the letter citing the club’s name, described himself as “flabbergasted” by Miller’s claim, one that he first heard her make at a community meeting. | Donald Friedman, the head of a citizens group who wrote the letter citing the club’s name, described himself as “flabbergasted” by Miller’s claim, one that he first heard her make at a community meeting. |
| “Our jaws dropped,” said Friedman, 74, the leader of the Sheridan-Kalorama Neighborhood Council. “I and most of the people — virtually everybody I talked to — were unaware of who their clientele is. Race has no issue.” | “Our jaws dropped,” said Friedman, 74, the leader of the Sheridan-Kalorama Neighborhood Council. “I and most of the people — virtually everybody I talked to — were unaware of who their clientele is. Race has no issue.” |
| To the west of Dupont Circle, Sheridan-Kalorama is among the District’s wealthiest neighborhoods, gilded terrain for mansions occupied by the likes of former president Barack Obama and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Amazon founder and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos purchased the former Textile Museum in the neighborhood and is converting it into the largest private home in the city. | |
| The enclave is also home to Jerry Schaeffer, a taxicab tycoon whose holdings include a Fifth Avenue apartment in Manhattan, a Palm Beach getaway and, as it happens, the property that houses the strip club. | The enclave is also home to Jerry Schaeffer, a taxicab tycoon whose holdings include a Fifth Avenue apartment in Manhattan, a Palm Beach getaway and, as it happens, the property that houses the strip club. |
| Schaeffer’s son Jeffrey, 55, who is married to Miller, is president of the company that controls Assets. | Schaeffer’s son Jeffrey, 55, who is married to Miller, is president of the company that controls Assets. |
| But it is the elder Schaeffer’s ownership of the property that led 20 residents to recently picket outside his stately Kalorama home, the entrance to which is framed by an American flag and two stone lions. | But it is the elder Schaeffer’s ownership of the property that led 20 residents to recently picket outside his stately Kalorama home, the entrance to which is framed by an American flag and two stone lions. |
| An outdoor security camera monitored the protest. | An outdoor security camera monitored the protest. |
| “Let’s wave to the camera — hold the signs up!” Drissel told her cohorts, who arrived carrying poster boards that read “Protect Our Kids, No Strip Club” and “It’s Not an Asset, It’s a Liability for Our Neighborhood.” | “Let’s wave to the camera — hold the signs up!” Drissel told her cohorts, who arrived carrying poster boards that read “Protect Our Kids, No Strip Club” and “It’s Not an Asset, It’s a Liability for Our Neighborhood.” |
| Kalorama is not immune to politics, as Trump and Kushner learned when demonstrators from across the area assembled outside their house after Ivanka’s father became president. But it’s rare for neighborhood residents to turn on one of their own. | Kalorama is not immune to politics, as Trump and Kushner learned when demonstrators from across the area assembled outside their house after Ivanka’s father became president. But it’s rare for neighborhood residents to turn on one of their own. |
| “We will of course only march on the sidewalk and will not be loud,” Drissel wrote in a pre-protest email to the group. | “We will of course only march on the sidewalk and will not be loud,” Drissel wrote in a pre-protest email to the group. |
| Two of the demonstrators arrived in a Cadillac. Friedman stopped by with his two dogs, a Shih Tzu and a Shih Tzu spaniel. | Two of the demonstrators arrived in a Cadillac. Friedman stopped by with his two dogs, a Shih Tzu and a Shih Tzu spaniel. |
| At one point, several commiserated about what they had heard transpires inside the club, including that it features a glass-enclosed shower where dancers perform. | At one point, several commiserated about what they had heard transpires inside the club, including that it features a glass-enclosed shower where dancers perform. |
| “If guys watch women taking a shower, that’s their issue,” said Jim Groninger, 74, who runs a biotech company and who recently moved to the neighborhood. He suggested that Assets might find a more receptive audience in Amsterdam. | “If guys watch women taking a shower, that’s their issue,” said Jim Groninger, 74, who runs a biotech company and who recently moved to the neighborhood. He suggested that Assets might find a more receptive audience in Amsterdam. |
| Elizabeth Calomiris, 66, an interior designer, said she learned of the protest at an exercise class she takes at a nearby sports club with Drissel. | Elizabeth Calomiris, 66, an interior designer, said she learned of the protest at an exercise class she takes at a nearby sports club with Drissel. |
| It was her first demonstration, she said. | It was her first demonstration, she said. |
| “I was in finishing school during the ’60s. I’ve never smoked a cigarette,” Calomiris explained, volunteering a flurry of personal details including that she has been married several times, that she splits time between Washington and Miami and that her current South Beach boyfriend is a “young Brazilian.” (“I should be ashamed,” she said, her raucous laugh suggesting otherwise.) | “I was in finishing school during the ’60s. I’ve never smoked a cigarette,” Calomiris explained, volunteering a flurry of personal details including that she has been married several times, that she splits time between Washington and Miami and that her current South Beach boyfriend is a “young Brazilian.” (“I should be ashamed,” she said, her raucous laugh suggesting otherwise.) |
| As a member of a prominent Washington real estate family, Calomiris said she appreciates the virtues of a free market and that adult entertainment can generate profits. But not all locations are suitable, especially not the one commanded by Assets, she said. | As a member of a prominent Washington real estate family, Calomiris said she appreciates the virtues of a free market and that adult entertainment can generate profits. But not all locations are suitable, especially not the one commanded by Assets, she said. |
| “In this day and age of #MeToo and [Jeffrey] Epstein, are they kidding?” she asked. “They should move to Las Vegas.” | “In this day and age of #MeToo and [Jeffrey] Epstein, are they kidding?” she asked. “They should move to Las Vegas.” |
| After an hour of picketing, the demonstrators dispersed, though not before Drissel’s husband, noticing the flowers in the front yard, told his wife that they should find out whom the Schaeffers had hired as their gardener. | |
| A few nights later, as hip-hop blared, Miller walked through the crowd at Assets, tossing fat stacks of dollar bills in the air for the strippers splayed here and there, in various stages of undress and jiggle. | A few nights later, as hip-hop blared, Miller walked through the crowd at Assets, tossing fat stacks of dollar bills in the air for the strippers splayed here and there, in various stages of undress and jiggle. |
| Miller returned to her bar stool — a few feet from the infamous though empty shower stall — where she puffed on a hookah and surveyed the crowd, mostly men but also women, black and white. | Miller returned to her bar stool — a few feet from the infamous though empty shower stall — where she puffed on a hookah and surveyed the crowd, mostly men but also women, black and white. |
| “She’s too close to that guy!” Miller said, pointing across the floor at a dancer and ordering a bouncer to intervene. | “She’s too close to that guy!” Miller said, pointing across the floor at a dancer and ordering a bouncer to intervene. |
| Miller said she wants Assets to become the “Chick-fil-A of strip clubs,” by which she meant a place that “has the best customer service ever.” She said she struggles to understand her neighbors’ criticism, since adult entertainment has existed at her location since the Ford administration. | Miller said she wants Assets to become the “Chick-fil-A of strip clubs,” by which she meant a place that “has the best customer service ever.” She said she struggles to understand her neighbors’ criticism, since adult entertainment has existed at her location since the Ford administration. |
| “Who are you to sit there and say this is a disgusting establishment?” she said of the opposition. “It’s not named ‘Butts and Sluts.’ Even if I named it ‘Church’ they wouldn't like it.” | “Who are you to sit there and say this is a disgusting establishment?” she said of the opposition. “It’s not named ‘Butts and Sluts.’ Even if I named it ‘Church’ they wouldn't like it.” |
| The neighborhood’s concerns stretch back more than two decades, when the club was under different ownership and known as the Royal Palace. In those years, the 1970s and ’80s, the city’s red-light district was focused along 14th Street NW and populated by prostitutes and patrons of places such as the Butterfly Club and Casino Royale, which offered X-rated movies, sex paraphernalia and peep booths. | The neighborhood’s concerns stretch back more than two decades, when the club was under different ownership and known as the Royal Palace. In those years, the 1970s and ’80s, the city’s red-light district was focused along 14th Street NW and populated by prostitutes and patrons of places such as the Butterfly Club and Casino Royale, which offered X-rated movies, sex paraphernalia and peep booths. |
| In 1993, the District imposed a moratorium on nude-dancing licenses. Currently, 15 licenses exist but only nine are in operation, including Assets’, which inherited the one owned by the Royal Palace. | In 1993, the District imposed a moratorium on nude-dancing licenses. Currently, 15 licenses exist but only nine are in operation, including Assets’, which inherited the one owned by the Royal Palace. |
| Drissel acknowledged she has not been to Assets, saying she has seen more than enough in the photos and videos on the club’s website and Instagram account. Back in the day, though, she twice made fact-finding visits to Royal Palace, she said. | Drissel acknowledged she has not been to Assets, saying she has seen more than enough in the photos and videos on the club’s website and Instagram account. Back in the day, though, she twice made fact-finding visits to Royal Palace, she said. |
| “I don’t think there were more than eight men in there — it was empty, pathetic,” she said. | “I don’t think there were more than eight men in there — it was empty, pathetic,” she said. |
| After a series of disturbances in the mid-1990s, she hosted a meeting at her home during which the Royal Palace’s owners listened as 40 neighbors vented about noise and litter. A 2001 agreement between the club and neighborhood groups banned signs or images that referred to dancing or “sexually-oriented activity.” | After a series of disturbances in the mid-1990s, she hosted a meeting at her home during which the Royal Palace’s owners listened as 40 neighbors vented about noise and litter. A 2001 agreement between the club and neighborhood groups banned signs or images that referred to dancing or “sexually-oriented activity.” |
| As a result, “Bar, Food & Fun” and “Royal Palace” were the only words that passersby saw on the club’s exterior, leading some unsuspecting visitors to think they had happened upon a Chinese restaurant. | As a result, “Bar, Food & Fun” and “Royal Palace” were the only words that passersby saw on the club’s exterior, leading some unsuspecting visitors to think they had happened upon a Chinese restaurant. |
| More recently, complaints faded as Royal Palace’s clientele dwindled. Then, last spring, Jerry Schaeffer, well known in District business and political circles, bought the property for $6.4 million and the Royal Palace shuttered. | More recently, complaints faded as Royal Palace’s clientele dwindled. Then, last spring, Jerry Schaeffer, well known in District business and political circles, bought the property for $6.4 million and the Royal Palace shuttered. |
| Schaeffer, 74, who did not respond to interview requests, told the Washington Business Journal in March that he hoped to lease the space to a retailer such as Wawa. By mid-September, after Assets’ two signs went up, neighborhood leaders were set for another battle. | Schaeffer, 74, who did not respond to interview requests, told the Washington Business Journal in March that he hoped to lease the space to a retailer such as Wawa. By mid-September, after Assets’ two signs went up, neighborhood leaders were set for another battle. |
| The Sheridan-Kalorama group began soliciting money from its members to hire an attorney as Assets prepared to go before the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration to renew its license. | The Sheridan-Kalorama group began soliciting money from its members to hire an attorney as Assets prepared to go before the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration to renew its license. |
| “Money will not be a problem,” said Friedman, whose letter protesting Assets cited potentially adverse effects on residential parking, traffic, noise and surrounding property values. He also referred to an altercation between bouncers and a patron who allegedly stole money from a stripper. | “Money will not be a problem,” said Friedman, whose letter protesting Assets cited potentially adverse effects on residential parking, traffic, noise and surrounding property values. He also referred to an altercation between bouncers and a patron who allegedly stole money from a stripper. |
| “I’m really offended by the behavior that’s likely going on in there,” he said. | “I’m really offended by the behavior that’s likely going on in there,” he said. |
| Miller said the bouncers, all employees of a security company contracted by the club, no longer work at Assets and that the incident was “not defining.” | Miller said the bouncers, all employees of a security company contracted by the club, no longer work at Assets and that the incident was “not defining.” |
| “There are a lot of great things that happen at Assets as well,” she said. | “There are a lot of great things that happen at Assets as well,” she said. |
| At a preliminary ABRA hearing last week, Friedman and Drissel and several other opponents sat across the aisle from Jeff Schaeffer, who showed up without his wife or his father — described by his son in a brief interview as a retiree who enjoys a fine cigar. | At a preliminary ABRA hearing last week, Friedman and Drissel and several other opponents sat across the aisle from Jeff Schaeffer, who showed up without his wife or his father — described by his son in a brief interview as a retiree who enjoys a fine cigar. |
| Schaeffer said his father’s attempts to lease the space to Wawa and two banks were unsuccessful. | Schaeffer said his father’s attempts to lease the space to Wawa and two banks were unsuccessful. |
| “No one wanted it,” he said. | “No one wanted it,” he said. |
| So they opened Assets. | So they opened Assets. |
| “Let them say what they want — isn’t it free speech? Who cares?” he said of the neighborhood’s complaints. “Let them picket. It’s good exercise. Maybe they’ll live a little longer.” | “Let them say what they want — isn’t it free speech? Who cares?” he said of the neighborhood’s complaints. “Let them picket. It’s good exercise. Maybe they’ll live a little longer.” |